Paris-based Macedonian vocalist and composer Aneta George returns with Eclipses, her fifth album and most personal work to date. Set for release on 14 November 2025, the record captures a rare alignment of the human and the cosmic: recorded during both a total solar and lunar eclipse, the sessions trace a journey through loss, transformation, and healing.
Blending jazz, Balkan traditions, and free improvisation, George channels grief into sound, creating a body of music that feels both intimate and celestial. Across eight compositions, she moves from the meditative poise of Truth and Echoes to the vibrant energy of Wake Up and Dharma, balancing vulnerability with an expansive sense of wonder.
Working alongside long-time collaborators from Magic Malik’s ensemble, George turns personal loss into a form of communion — music as ritual, as renewal, as offering. We spoke with Aneta about aligning art with the cosmos, the healing power of creation, and how Eclipses became both a farewell and a new beginning.
Your new album, Eclipses, was recorded to coincide with a total solar and lunar eclipse. How did aligning the sessions with these celestial events influence the music and your creative process?
I was curious how stellar events influence us and our creation, as citizens of Earth. I must say that during the eclipses it was potent, energy wise. The Solar Eclipse was intense for me personally. I remember I was in a state of floating and expansion. During the Lunar eclipse I felt more grounded and the energy was more gentle. I felt more structured. We recorded all instruments at once, it is my favorite way of recording music, and capturing magical moments. I would rather have imperfect music filled with magic moments, rather than chasing perfection only.
The album was inspired by the emotional aftermath of losing your beloved dog. How did this personal grief shape the compositions and the overall emotional arc of the record?
This time the grief went very deeply, so I wanted to make recording sessions that will heal the grief, rather than express it directly. In the modern society I think we have difficulties to deal with grief and grieving people, especially people who have lost their soul animals. I wanted to talk openly about it in public.
You’ve described the creation of this album as a kind of sonic ritual. How did the process of making Eclipses serve as a form of personal healing for you?
My creative process in general is very healing for me personally. Music is therapy for me: transformation of anger, grief, sadness into light. I like to go very deep in the subconscious and then let the soul (some call the soul – the superconscious) speak about it. It is healing as well as searching and discovering parts of myself that were hidden before.
Your music fuses jazz, Balkan traditions, and improvisation. How do you balance these elements while keeping the album’s emotional and cosmic themes cohesive?
To balance well, during my free time I learn a lot of rare old Macedonian and Balkan (and from this year Arabic) songs at home, and then I work a lot on jazz standards with my students. So it balances itself out inside me. But the more music I learn from any genre, the more I become aware that the most important is the emotion and the story behind the song – how it connects to our humanity. So I have phases in the evolution of my songs: writing the song (birth of the song) – singing the song – arranging – collective creation within the frame of the song with the band – recording.
Many of your long-standing collaborators are part of Parisian star Magic Malik’s band. How did their presence and musical voices shape the recording of Eclipses?
It’s an honor to work with them, they are my muses. I write the for them specifically in my mind (not just for any musician). They inspire me tremendously and their musical genius shaped this album a lot, it’s a collective creative energy. For example, the tune “Truth” is almost a completely improvised piece, only the bass line was written, and the words of the poem. I sincerely hope I will create many more albums with this band.
The album features pieces ranging from “Echoes,” a tribute to your dog, to “Dharma,” a fusion of drum-and-bass with Balkan jazz. How do these tracks reflect the spectrum of human experience you wanted to convey?
Echoes” is a song of grief, and “Dharma” is this unsettling feeling where you search for the right thing to do. So both feelings are highly uncomfortable, heavy and we don’t want to stay in them as humans, we are looking for a relief and a release. For me the music was the release when I was creating and singing it, I truly hope it will provide a release to the listener as well.
A conversation with Steve Coleman inspired the celestial alignment concept. Can you tell us more about that exchange and how it shaped your creative approach?
I’m lucky to learn from Steve, he’s my big influence and inspiration. His work ethics is admirable, and I think he’s an amazing human being as well. He pushes me to connect music to disciplines outside music, to look at the big picture and creation itself. He inspires me to never stop learning, practicing and creating.
While deeply personal, the album also explores universal themes of loss, inspiration, and connection. How do you navigate that balance in your music?
Through my experience as a human being on this Earth, I’ve realised that the more personal you get and the deeper you dive into your own emotions, the more universal message you can transmit. That’s why all my songs are deeply personal, and I’m coaching young artists to do the same. This way we share our human experience and we can compare notes. So we can uplift and inspire the listeners. So to come back to your question, the balance is a simple unification between the personal and universal.
How do you use your voice and instrumentation to convey both vulnerability and cosmic wonder, as listeners experience the journey of Eclipses?
I meditate and listen to my soul, so my voice and the arrangements come from there, also I try to be an instrument of the Universe when I create and sing.
What do you hope listeners take away from this album—whether they are navigating personal change, seeking stillness, or simply looking to reconnect with something deeper?
I hope with all my heart that this album will serve as an emotional support and a soul connection for the listeners, because it was for me. My message is if you go to the bottom of the feelings of grief and loss, love and freedom will meet you there.
